MEGADETH Mainman Defends 'Super Collider', Rules Out Reunion With FRIEDMAN And MENZA

In a brand new interview with the Las Vegas Sun, MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine spoke about the reaction to the band's latest album, "Super Collider", and his plans for the follow-up effort.

"A record is that — a record, a piece of time," Mustaine said of the fan response to "Super Collider". "I was going through a lot of really cool stuff with the band, but a lot of really heavy, personal stuff with my mother-in-law's Alzheimer's. So people like some songs, don't like others, and that's always been the way with MEGADETH's fans. They're opinionated.

"I think when you have a band that doesn't really follow a set formula, people are going to react to certain songs and not to other songs. I mean, the very first song we ever did, we started with piano. Who would've ever thought that?"

Regarding the recent reports that MEGADETH has already begun work on the material for the next CD, Mustaine said: "I do want to continue to write. I think it's fun to write songs and as a musician, sometimes you've got something stuck in your soul that you gotta get it out.

"['Forget To Remember' on 'Super Collider'] is this whole process of watching this loved one in my family just melt in front of your eyes; it's hard. It really, really challenged what I was made of; she's still alive, but she's not there anymore. And how do you put that in a song if it's not going to be a sad song? It'd be pretty fucked up to make a happy song about something tragic.

"So, yeah, we always have a lot of stuff we want to write about. I think it comes in due time. We're always picking up the guitar and making noises, sometimes it's a cool riff, and you're 'tape that real quick,' and other times it's 'stop.' [laughs] And that's the great thing when you're close like we are. We're four guys who are really, really close, and I can't tell you how many times I've gone into the jam room and told Chris [Broderick, MEGADETH guitarist] to knock it off, and he'll do the same solo for an hour and a half straight. It's Chinese water torture. [laughs]

Mustaine was also asked if he ever feels the new stuff has to compete with his past successes or even just with nostalgia.

"I don't feel like that, but some fans certainly act like that," he said. "We always hear, 'Make 'Rust In Peace' again.' It'd be real easy to do it, but where's the artistic integrity of doing that? And people say, 'You should get Marty [Friedman, former MEGADETH guitarist] back in the band.' Marty doesn't want to be in MEGADETH. He quit, he's a quitter, so get over it. And Nick [Menza, former MEGADETH drummer] isn't very healthy. Look at any of the video clips of him lately. So it's like either you're stupid or you're a dreamer. And when you make a record, you don't stake your whole life on the success or failure of any one song. Some people like it, some don't. ['Super Collider'] entered the charts at No. 6. If that's something to be critical of, then bring it. I'll take that all day long."

Read the entire interview at Las Vegas Sun.